Destiny's Children
by Rinerra-Kosuke
Summary: After the fourth great ninja war with Madara's final defeat, life in Konoha realizes that time waits for no one, and that life must continue on. But it will never be the same after the great losses from the war…Will the new generation be able to carry on the legacy and will of fire of the shinobi legends who survived the war? Or will the war continue on with them? Warning: Spoilers
1. CHAPTER ONE: Hidden Beginnings

**DISCLAIMER: **Masashi Kishimoto is the rightful owner to the original Naruto series and characters in it; I do not own the series or its characters in any way. I do own my own characters I created, however, so do not copyright my work.

~This story is one that has had years (about 7 to be precise) of planning and thinking in the making, and will be quite long. So if you're looking for a short story, you've come to the wrong one...It starts not long after the fourth great ninja war. While the original characters are, of course, in the story, the new generation of ninja, and their new lives as shinobi, now begins...~

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE: Hidden Beginnings**

* * *

An exploding tag went off about five meters to the left. He clutched his right arm tightly, attempting to prevent more of his blood from spilling to the ground where the ninja hounds could easily smell it then track him down. He was breathing very hard, and his lungs burned and ached from exhaustion. Any more of this, and he would die, then his mission would all have been for nothing.

_ 'You've killed ninja way stronger than this bunch. What's with you today, Kareno?'_

"Not now, Kai!" Kareno muttered under his breath. He wasn't hearing voices like some insane person, he was a Jinchuuriki. Only he and his mother knew of this, but she had disappeared years ago. He hadn't seen her since he was very young, so he'd ultimately been on his own for most of his treacherous life. Kaireya, which was the name of the demon sealed in him, was his constant companion through it all though, but he guessed she didn't have much choice in that matter. If word got out that he was a host, he would be shunned away from every village and hunted by all for the rest of his life.

Although Kai kept him sane all those times he had been alone, she could be rather distracting at critical times, like right now. And Kareno found it got old. Very quickly.

He lept out of the way just in time to dodge a kunai that pierced the trunk of a dead tree he had been leaning on only seconds before. A few seconds after that, the weapon exploded from a hidden exploding tag that had been placed on it, knocking the already withered tree to the earth.

Concealing himself in the leaves of the tree he was in, Kareno scanned the area around him. From his location high above the ground, he was able to count how many enemies were tracking him.

Fifteen left, and he'd killed three already.

_ 'You're such a weakling compared to her,'_ Kai complained with a growl. '_Always needing my help, yet never taking advantage of my power.'_

"I don't need your power, and I don't need your help," he whispered sternly.

_ 'Yes you do. You'll die before you reach the village, and it's all because of your stubbornness.'_

"I'm not stubborn. Now, please, _shut. Up._"

Kai held her tongue, but only because arguing with an ignorant child wasn't going to get them anywhere, she told herself.

A twig snapped suddenly above him. Reacting a little too late, the blunt end of the enemy's sword bashed him hard in the skull. Instantly unconscious, Kareno toppled from his hiding spot and fell, helplessly and dangerously getting closer to the ground. He was falling to his death.

Several pairs of hands suddenly snatched him out of the air and carried him a distance away from the rogue ninja who awaited his death on the forest floor. It never came. The group of rogues turned to close in on the shinobi boy and finish him, but halted when they came face to face with three ninja.

They stood confidently and unwavering, facing them with no fear in their eyes, and the target lay still and unconscious on the ground behind the trio.

"Out of the way, you brats!" The leader of the rogue group threatened. "The boy is ours to deal with!"

The pink-haired kunoichi turned to the pale man next to her and whispered something they couldn't hear. The enemy exchanged several unsure glances with each other before any of them moved.

"We won't let you kill an innocent kid! Believe it!" The blonde one threatened with and icy tone.

* * *

They had been returning from a mission in Iwa in the Land of Earth, and the journey home itself took quite a long time, even for top-class shinobi. Exhausted and not the most energetic after such a mission, they couldn't help but think of getting back to Konoha fast.

Sakura just wanted to go home, shower, and take it easy.

Naruto's ever-hungry stomach growled at the thought of celebrating the mission success with some ramen at Ichiraku's.

Sai…wasn't thinking much of anything, really. He was just content that the mission was a success and that he had a report to write once they returned.

That was when they heard the explosions ahead of them. Even though they were drained, the team readied themselves and moved in to analyze the situation, and be ready to help resolve it if necessary.

* * *

"Why on earth would a group of rogues be after a child?" Sakura asked Sai curiously in a hushed tone. Sai made no sign to respond as he was focused on their unexpected enemy in front of them. They seemed hesitant to carry out their task of killing the kid after the three-man team showed up to save him.

"We won't let you kill an innocent kid! Believe it!" Naruto growled angrily, instantly drawing up a group of shadow clones beside him. He ran forward to attack the thugs head-on.

"Don't just charge ahead, idiot!" Sakura shouted after him. But like always, he didn't listen.

"For someone who is not far from becoming the village's new Hokage, he still acts very rash," Sai observed blankly while finishing a jutsu on a painting he had done. The large ink tiger came to life and launched ahead to join Naruto in battle, attacking enemies left and right.

Sakura turned back to the boy and knelt beside him, gathering chakra in her hands to heal his injuries. As she set to work on his head first, she studied him. He wore a mask that covered half of his face, and his hair was a silver-white color that hung down past his ears. Both of his brows were knit tightly together in pain, so Sakura started to heal his badly bleeding arm after finishing with the nasty hit he had received to his head. A kunai suddenly pierced the ground next to her leg. She shrieked in surprise, and then turned her head to find Naruto finishing off the enemy who had managed to throw a sneak attack her way. Luckily, the rogue had missed, but not by much.

"Watch my back, Naruto!" she yelled angrily before turning back to her patient.

"S-Sorry Sakura!"

Sakura heard Naruto announce his renowned attack _Rasengan!_ before she finished up on the child's arm.

The silver-haired boy's eyes fluttered open and met hers. His eyes were a very bright jade color, but the emptiness and distance in them told her he still wasn't fully conscious. She smiled softly at him and finished healing the last of his worst injuries.

"You'll still be covered in blood and dirt, but at least you aren't hurt anymore," She said more to herself than to him, sighing in relief. She had a tendency to think out loud when she was working her medical ninjutsu.

His bright eyes remained locked on hers, then something like awareness flickered across their surfaces and they grew wide in surprise. He suddenly sat up and pulled a kunai on her. Before he could do anything with it, however, she grabbed his wrist and pointed the weapon away from her. She even had to use some of her crazy kunoichi strength she had inherited from the fourth Hokage to keep him from getting near her. _'He's pretty strong for a kid,'_ she thought, surprised. But easily no match for her.

"Calm down! I'm not your enemy!" She told him firmly but gently. He stared at her hard, confusion beginning to be apparent on his face. Then he slowly lowered his armed hand until it rested soundly on the ground between them. His body was still tense and alert, as any well-trained shinobi should be when faced in this situation. Sakura released her painful grip on him. He pulled away and carefully rubbed his wrist, which was beginning to smart a little.

Sakura continued to study him with interest, and she couldn't help but smile at a revelation she had.

_ 'With his silvery hair and half his face covered by a mask, he looks so much like-'_

"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto exclaimed in surprise as he and Sai quickly approached Sakura and stood by her side. Sai looked as impassive as ever, if not slightly more curious than usual.

Sakura rolled her eyes at the realization that she and Naruto had held similar thoughts about the kid.

"Naruto, that definitely is not Captain Kakashi," Sai stated simply.

"Sure looks a lot like him though!" Naruto exclaimed suspiciously, watching the boy with a wary look.

"My name is Kareno," the boy said in an annoyed tone, glaring at Naruto coldly.

"Well how the heck was I supposed to know that?" Naruto's voice started to rise with irritation.

"Naruto." Sakura cut him off quickly before he started anything. Everyone got quiet once again. She looked at Kareno and smiled kindly. Unlike their sensei this boy so strikingly resembled, his cheeks flushed slightly at her gesture. She held back a giggle at his innocent reaction, finding it rather cute.

"Thanks for taking care of those idiot rogues and… thanks for saving me…" Kareno muttered. He would never admit it, but he was rather embarrassed at his show of helplessness while these three strangers had saved his hide. He had been within inches from losing his life against a normally easy group of shinobi, yet he found himself being grateful to the strange group for keeping him alive. It was a first for him to be sure, and not one he was proud of. But nonetheless grateful for.

"You're welcome," Sakura said. Though Naruto was still put out by the boy's ungrateful and cold attitude earlier, and merely replied with a 'humph!'

An awkward silence hung in the air before Kareno stood and brushed off the forest debris that clung to his clothes from the fight.

"How old are you, Kareno-kun?" Sakura asked. She couldn't resist adding the little suffix at the end. The kid was just too cute for his own good.

For some reason, this woman, Kareno found, was easy to relax around. He didn't know if that was a good or bad thing at this point.

"I'm eleven as of two days ago," he told her, unsure why he was talking about this to a complete stranger.

"Well, happy birthday," Sai said, giving his best attempt at a smile. As usual, it just made him look eerie, and it crept out everyone around him at that moment. Naruto looked more surprised than disturbed.

"What?" Sai asked. "The book mentions that it's customary to say that to someone when it's the anniversary of their day of birth."

"Right… thank you," Kareno gave Sai a weird look. Sheathing his kunai back into his pouch, he turned and began to walk away from them without a word.

"Wait, where are you going?" Naruto asked after him.

"None of your business," Kareno said coolly, shoving his hands into his pockets without turning back to acknowledge him. Naruto automatically fumed at the uncaring display that reminded him of his cocky raven-haired friend from their academy days.

"Grrrr! Why you little, ungrateful piece of-"

Sakura's fist met Naruto's face with a loud _crack!_ before he could finish his sentence. He tumbled directly into a nearby tree, causing the tree to snap loudly at the base.

Kareno had seen the damage the kunoichi had inflicted on her companion, and he silently made a mental note to never piss her off if their paths ever crossed again.

No one moved, particularly a now badly-injured Naruto, as Sakura took a few deep breaths to calm down.

"That can't be good for the poor tree," Kareno teased with a serious expression. Sakura smiled at his attempt to lighten the mood, but didn't bother apologizing for her intimidating and violent actions.

"We're headed back to our village. Did you want to join us to rest from your travels for a bit?" She offered. Kareno turned towards her just slightly and rubbed the back of his neck thoughtfully. Sai and Sakura looked at each other briefly, and then looked back to the kid.

That little action was something their sensei did quite often, and they both couldn't help be a little thrown-off when Kareno did it. He really was too similar to the Jounin back in the village. But coincidences weren't that uncommon in the shinobi world either.

"I don't exactly think it's a good idea to travel with people whose names I don't even know, so I must decline," Kareno said. Inner Sakura slapped her forehead at realizing they hadn't even introduced themselves. No wonder the kid was so on edge.

"I'm Sakura Haruno," she pointed to herself and smiled as if proud of the name. "And this is Sai," she gestured to the ghastly-pale comrade standing beside her. He gave another creepy smile, sending shivers down Kareno's spine and goose bumps down his arms. With a peeved expression, Sakura then pointed towards Naruto, who was struggling to remove himself from the indent he had created in the tree. "And that's Naruto…"

Kareno recognized the names immediately. Had he really, by chance, ran into some of the most legendary ninja in all the lands of the great nations? And had his butt saved by them no less? He didn't speak right away, unsure of what to even say to the revered heroes of the fourth great ninja war. He just stared in awe.

"You're really the heroes of the Leaf then…" Kareno said more than asked. Naruto had finally recovered by then and was all-too happy to know his status among the great nations had finally humbled the cocky brat.

"Believe it!" He shouted self-assuredly.

"Well-met, then. It's quite an honor to meet you." Kareno wasn't a big fan of fawning over idols, but he did greatly respect any shinobi who held such a high rank because of his outstanding services to his fellow men. Even if, he realized, the great heroes everyone described them to be acted a little stranger than he had imagined them to be like.

"Alright, I'll take you up on that offer after all, Haruno-sama." Sakura blushed at the honored title, and then smiled proudly.

"Well! At least someone around here is a gentleman!"

* * *

The four ninja took their time walking the path towards the Hidden Leaf village. The past few hours were filled with endless questions for Kareno since he was quite a mystery to the three-man team. When Naruto asked him why he was ignoring most of his questions, Kareno had simply told him he wasn't ignoring him. He was free to ask away, but that he would choose to answer what he wished. Sakura's liking of him seemed to grow every time he opened his mouth. The kid was a smart-ass to be sure, but not in an annoying or idiotic way, like her moronic blonde friend. Sai remained quiet most of the time, simply observing and listening to the odd exchange.

Kareno smiled to himself a little at the realization that he hadn't talked _this_ much in quite a long time. While he preferred to keep to himself, he found he enjoyed the company. Then again, even the company he had found at his last stop in Suna had been pretty rough around the edges. He had told Naruto about it a little, but that only further ignited his curiosity in the kid.

"What were you doing in Suna all by yourself?" He asked. Although Sakura didn't voice it, she had been wondering the same thing.

"A mission," was all Kareno admitted. When the others realized he wasn't going to give any more details, they exchanged curious looks. Naruto balled his fists slightly. This kid could be pretty dang infuriating, but at least he wasn't as bad as Sasuke, he thought.

"Kareno-kun?" Sakura asked with some hesitancy. Kareno turned to look at her, once again flushing slightly. And once again, she found herself smiling at the reaction. She couldn't help it! It was pretty dang cute to see a tough-acting eleven-year-old shinobi blushing just because she had talked to him.

"Yes, Haruno-sama?"

"Just Sakura is fine. I hope I'm not being too nosy, but where are your parents?"

She had been concerned about it ever since he had told her that he had been on a solo mission for a number of years now. It was very unusual for a ten-year-old to be out on the mission field when he, according to their village, should still be at the academy along with other ninja his age. Even more strange was the fact that he had been on a _solo_ mission for the first years of his being on the field. Something didn't seem right about it.

Kareno stopped walking. The others continued to walk past him, but stopped once they realized their new companion was no longer walking with them. They waited.

His head was hanging lower than before. Kareno stared down at the ground, seeming to take a sudden interest in his shoes. Sakura swallowed hard as she watched the atmosphere around him transform. Should she have just not said anything? But she couldn't blame herself. Any other person would have wondered that as well. But she still felt bad for making him remember whatever it was he seemed he would rather forget.

Naruto watched him sympathetically, piecing a puzzle together in his head. Maybe that's why he acted the way he did towards him, because his past was perhaps similar to his own? He felt kind of bad for judging the kid right from the start.

Not knowing it, Naruto hit the mark more closely than anyone else ever had, yet he also couldn't be more wrong. Sai remained silent as Kareno looked up at the three and met their sad gazes.

"What?! I'm not looking for your pity! I just don't really have an answer I can give you…" Kareno turned his head away from them.

"What do you mean?"

Kareno stayed quiet for a good while longer.

_'You could get in trouble if you tell them anything more.'_ Kai pointed out strictly. He knew that, but if these three were from the very village that was his destination, then perhaps they could help…?

"Well, I'm actually looking for someone in your village. A man."

The trio cocked their eyebrows simultaneously, signaling him to continue.

"A man?" Sakura encouraged further.

Kareno nodded. "My father, actually. My mother gave me his name years ago, and I wanted to find him now that my mission is complete. I'm looking for a man by the name of Hatake. You see, my real name is Kareno Rai Hatake."

* * *

"A-achoo!" Kakashi automatically turned and sneezed into his elbow, even though he was wearing his mask.

"Catching a cold, Kakashi?" Genma asked.

"Nonsense, I never get sick."

"Well, perhaps you're being talked about?" He teased.

"Don't get superstitious on me, Genma."

Genma shrugged and the two continued to walk towards the village gate. It was good to finally relax and get back to the village and life they knew and loved.

* * *

**Author's Notes! :)**

I've been writing stories for years, and I finally am going to start publishing some of my ideas, like this one for example, onto this website! I'm excited to hear from you guys and what you think as the story will progress. I have a busy schedule but will do my best to update and keep you guys interested! Let me here your thoughts through some reviews! Thanks! Love you all!

~Rin-chan


	2. CHAPTER TWO: The Hidden Leaf

**Disclaimer:** Masashi Kishimoto is the rightful owner to the original Naruto series and characters in it; I do not own the series or its characters in any way. I do own my own characters I created, however, so do not copyright my work.

The first chapter was a little fast-paced, but it was actually supposed to be that way. So I apologize if it didn't make sense right from the get-go. Things will slow down and start to move along with each chapter. I promise! ;)

Also, I did a little art sketch of Kareno Hatake for you guys to see! (He's much older in this picture than in the beginning of the story). If anyone wants to check it out, just go to deviantart, look me up: Rinerra-Kosuke. I only have two pictures in my gallery and both are of Kareno!

Here's chapter two! Enjoy! :)

* * *

**CHAPTER 2: The Hidden Leaf**

* * *

Three pairs of cerulean, onyx, and emerald eyes grew wide in complete shock. Kareno watched them, anxiously waiting for someone to say something to him. Anything. But no words were said. Kareno shifted from one foot to another, unsure of what he may have said to cause such a stunned reaction. It wasn't until about a good ten, solid minutes after Kareno had revealed the purpose of his going with them that the astonished silence was broken by none other than Naruto. But his loud and unexpected burst of laughter made everyone jump.

"What's so funny, Naruto?" Sakura asked, exasperated.

"I'm sorry!" He choked out between guffaws, clutching his stomach tightly. "But for a second I thought the kid said his dad was Hatake!"

The look Kareno gave him was one of someone who wasn't sure if his mental state was entirely all that stable.

"I did say that...?" Kareno responded quietly.

Naruto finally, slowly registered his words and suddenly found that the situation wasn't so funny anymore. He paled significantly.

"Oookaay!" Sakura clapped her hands together, grabbing everyone's attention. "Team meeting! Hold on one second," she held up a finger to Kareno, who raised an eyebrow questioningly. He walked over and sat down on a moss-covered log, crossing his legs and looking up at the sky patiently. He had no idea what the so-called team meeting was for, but he didn't bother to pry into something he wasn't following at all.

The riled up kunoichi suddenly grabbed her teammates by their ears and pulled them in painfully close.

"Ow! Lemme go!"

"Not until I make something perfectly clear with you two..." Sakura warned darkly. The boys gulped. They had no choice but to listen to the dangerous woman.

"This is not; I repeat, _not, _any of our business. We don't actually know this kid. For all we know, the man he's looking for could have been a distant relative of Kakashi-sensei's. Or it all just happens to be one, big, fat coincidence. We will not, again _Naruto_, I repeat, **_not_**_, _get involved in this. No matter how mad our curiosity may drive us, we all keep our mouths shut. Capeesh?" She ordered in a tone that left no room for arguments. Sai nodded with unease, but that didn't keep thick-headed Naruto from trying to protest.

"But-?!"

"Naruto, if you breathe even one word of this newly discovered and dangerous information to anyone, _especially_ sensei, I swear I will tear your head off and shove it so far up your arse that the only light of day you will ever see again will be no bigger than a pinprick coming through your neck!" She hissed in his face. He shut his mouth immediately and quickly nodded in agreement.

Satisfied, she let go of their ears then turned back around and beckoned Kareno to come join them. He uncrossed his legs and stretched as he stood, causing his back to crack once or twice. He didn't bother to ask what that had all been about since he had been out of hearing distance anyway. He shrugged it off and walked the rest of the way towards the gates with the respected shinobi heroes, ignoring the constant, restless stares and forced smiles he felt they were giving him. He was just happy to finally be on his way to the beautiful, if not much smaller now, and well-known village of Konoha; the place he'd dreamt of returning to for all of his life.

* * *

"I insist, you have the worst handwriting of any academy student I've ever had," Iruka grumbled at the awful sight in his hands, which was a barely legible and badly-abused mission report. Most of the words were smudged from mud and heaven knew what else, and the paper was torn and crinkled in so many places it was a miracle it wasn't falling apart in his feather-light, cautious grip with it. Kakashi merely gave a smooth, carefree, eye-crinkle smile to the man pointing daggers at him from behind the desk.

"Well, you see, I was writing the report while on the field, and we came across a damsel in distress who couldn't keep her hands off of me after I so graciously saved her and-"

"Oh save it for a rainy day Hatake-san, or at least the Hokage. I don't feel like dealing with your excuses today," Iruka rubbed his temples as if to ward off the headache that was starting to form.

"Ouch. My feelings are hurt, Iruka," Kakashi clutched his heart dramatically and fell forward as if he was having a heart attack. He earned a chuckle from the other two Jounin in the office and, to his amusement, a dirty look from his younger associate.

"Next time I'd better be able to read it from the first sentence and beyond or I'm not accepting it until you can write a decent report," Iruka sighed and waved him away.

"Yes, yes, of course Iruka-sensei," Kakashi brushed it off with a dismissive hand wave as he turned to leave. He didn't really plan to change anything about his style of turning in mission reports. Eventually, they'd stop asking him to write them altogether and he wouldn't have to worry about another report ever again. It was taking a little longer than he'd hoped, about six years or so of pissing off the Hokage and those who collected the reports, but it was slowly working. Really, very slowly. Kakashi smiled to himself.

Once outside the Hokage tower, which was currently under construction of being restored, not unlike most of Konoha, he reached for his shuriken pouch. From it, he withdrew the latest Icha-Icha book that Jiraiya had written for him and him alone before he'd died. There was only one copy, and it was his most prized possession. He normally didn't bring this particular book out in public so casually, as it was so special to him, but today felt different. So he supposed he could make one exception of it. He buried his nose into the fresh-smelling pages, already engrossed in the content. While he had trained himself over the years to dodge the normal flow of citizens throughout the town roads while he read, he couldn't avoid the unexpected situation that, quite literally, nearly mowed him down.

He raised his eyes from the page he had been reading, and then his heart sped up in bewilderment at the oncoming dust cloud before him. Moving aside quickly, he managed to dodge none other than his former pupils, who were, for some reason, in a high-speed chase after each other. Sasuke had sprinted past him first, nearly knocking him to the ground. Flustered, Kakashi's eyes grew wide in surprise, wondering what on earth the Uchiha was running from.

He received his answer shortly after that thought. Immediately following pursuit, an orange-clad Naruto was chasing after him and shouting some desperate nonsense about something that Sasuke had to see.

And not long after him, Sakura and Sai were chasing the both of them, with Sakura fuming like a bull that had just been turned out into the fighting arena. Most everyone, including Kakashi, had stopped dead, wondering what the heck was going on. Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck thoughtfully for a few seconds, shrugged, then returned his book to its rightful pocket.

_'Whatever is going on with those guys,' _Kakashi thought to himself as he turned to follow them, '_it's bound to be interesting.'_

* * *

When a knock sounded at the door, Tsunade didn't raise her head from the stack of papers she was in the process of signing. She continued to scan the documents and scribble her name at the bottom of each one that had managed to catch her interest. She came across a paper that was, in her opinion, a complete waste of time, and crumpled it into a ball before saying, "You may come in."

She caught a glimpse of silver-white hair in the corner of her eye as she continued to write and sighed.

"Kakashi, I already told you this morning...there aren't any missions available right now. If you feel like you need to have something better to do with your time, maybe you could help the citizens reconstruct the buildings that were destroyed?" Tsunade suggested impatiently.

"That's the second time today someone has addressed me by that name," an unfamiliar and much younger voice replied curiously. Tsunade raised her eyes to meet a pair of bright, jade-blue ones.

"Oh. Sorry...can I help you?" She asked uncertainly. What was an academy student doing here? "Are you lost? This is the Hokage's office."

"I'm fully aware of that," he bowed his head in respect.

Huh. Now that she thought of it, he didn't sound like an academy student. His manner of speaking was above his age, and she didn't even recognize his face. And she knew almost every face in Konoha, particularly the ones that belonged to the shinobi of the village. So, who was he?

"You probably don't know who I am since the Sondaime was the last Hokage I had the pleasure of knowing," he explained, seeing the unsure look on her face. Her expression relaxed slightly, and he reached into his shuriken pouch to retrieve the details of his mission. He held them towards her.

"Lord Third's instructions are on this paper. He told me to hold onto it so that the new Hokage would know I am to be trusted."

"I see..." Tsunade said, still not entirely sure what was going on. "Bring it here."

Kareno did as she said, and placed the documents on her desk before promptly stepping back and standing, once again, at attention. The corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched slightly.

_'Respectful brat, __isn't __he?'_ She thought to herself as she picked up the small pile of papers and began to scan through them.

As she read, her eyes grew wide in surprise and she immediately looked up at the silver-haired shinobi boy. Then back to the papers for a short time. Then back up again at him. This went on for a while, and Kareno merely stood patiently, waiting for her to finish. He wasn't even fully sure of what those papers contained since he was told it was for the Hokage's eyes only. Her reaction was making him nervous.

"SHIZUNE!" Tsunade called out loudly, making Kareno jump slightly. Shizune, with little Tonton in her arms, immediately rushed into the room.

"Yes, Lady Tsunade?" Shizune asked worriedly.

"Send for Kakashi immediately," she said briskly, looking at the young boy in front of her desk. It was no wonder she had mistaken him for the village's best Jounin earlier. He was nearly the spitting image of him. "There is a very urgent matter he must attend to as soon as possible. Now, go! Hurry!" She ordered.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama!" Shizune bowed quickly before making haste towards the door. Once she exited, Kareno watched the Hokage with an anxious expression.

"Is something the matter?"

"Kareno," Tsunade studied him with a keen eye. "This here is top-secret information about you that the Sondaime has passed on to me. Do you know what it says?"

Kareno shook his head sincerely. "I do not, Lady Hokage. But I hope it is nothing of grave concern."

"Hm," Tsunade nodded once, scanning over the papers once again, her hands shaking slightly. How could Sarutobi have kept something this big a secret for so long? This wasn't your everyday academy-age shinobi.

_'Sarutobi-sensei…what in the heaven's name were you planning with this boy?'_

She tried to hide her wary gaze from behind the papers as she took another hard look at the living legacy of the Kuutetsuki clan.

The Kuutetsuki clan was thought to be extinct for nearly one-hundred and fifty years, until Kareno's mother, an extremely dangerous and powerful kunoichi, had come along a few decades ago. He seemed unaware of how big of a significance his arrival back in the village actually was. It was a situation that troubled Tsunade greatly.

_'It would be better to keep him in the dark about this for now...'_ She thought to herself.

"Kareno-kun."

"Yes, Lady Hokage?" Kareno replied firmly, trying to hide his own unease that he found in the blonde woman's intense, hazel-gold gaze. He'd faced many a cold and deadly stares in the past few years, but this woman was something else entirely.

"Go enjoy the sights of the village. I'll have someone retrieve you when I wish to speak to you again." She stood and turned towards the windows overlooking the village, which was in the midst of repairs. Kareno knelt and bowed before taking his leave.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama."

As Tsunade listened to his retreating footsteps, she whispered sadly to herself, "Don't thank me just yet..."

* * *

"Naruto you idiotic dobe, get the heck away from me!" Sasuke growled in angry irritation as he headed into the training grounds where the team had first gathered together.

"Sasuke! PLEASE just listen to me, you have to know something!" Naruto begged as he ran after him.

"Naruto! I told you to keep your mouth SHUT!" Sakura screamed at him from only a few feet behind. She was getting close. Any second now she should be able to reach out and-

"GOTCHA!" She shouted triumphantly as she snagged the back of his jacket and yanked him back roughly. Naruto choked on the force of her pull as he went down and landed with a _thud!_ right onto his back. The wind was immediately knocked out of him, and he found himself unable to move or even breathe right.

Sasuke finally came to a halt and bent over to catch his breath. The moron had come out of nowhere and practically attacked him while he had been eating lunch with Kiba and Choji. He had no choice but to leave, and once he saw he was being chased, he ran away. His lunch was unpleasantly making its way up after such an intense game of cat-and-mouse, so he sat on the grass and tried to hold it down. His face turned a sickly green color.

Sakura grabbed Naruto by the collar and hoisted him up in the air, shaking him violently as she cursed hateful and scornful insults at him.

"You son of a bitch! You swore silence back in the forest! We are not involved in this whatsoever! I ought to beat the living shit out of you! In fact, I might just tear your shins out right here!"

"S-S-Sakura it's j-just Sasuke!" He gasped as his head was thrown about aggressively from Sakura's vicious strangle on him.

"Sakura, what is going on here?" Sasuke carefully stood back up once he was feeling better and made his way over to the hostile scene in front of him. She stopped throwing Naruto around and glared at Sasuke hotly.

"None of your business! CHANAROOOOO!" Sakura threw her clenched fist at Naruto and made contact with his jaw. With a loud _crack! _from her hit, he spiraled through the air and crashed into a large boulder, causing a thunderous boom that echoed throughout the field. He fell to the grass, unmoving, in a heap of lifeless limbs.

"I think you killed him..." Sai said, staring at the orange pile that was Naruto. Sakura brushed her hands off as if they were dirty.

"Humph! He'll be fine. He just needs to keep his damn mouth shut!"

"Sai," Sasuke asked in a somewhat distressed tone, "please tell me what the hell is going on here, since it seems I'm already involved, whether that was intended or not."

"We met an interesting person in the forest today by the name of Hatake," Sai explained, ignoring the deadly look Sakura was now throwing his way.

"You came all this way just to tell me you saw Kakashi on your way home?" He asked incredulously.

"It wasn't Kakashi, Sasuke..." Sakura muttered, crossing her arms unhappily. He looked at her quizzically.

"We only know one Hatake, Sakura," Sasuke said, approaching her closely. She looked away and pinked slightly when he stood a few inches in front of her. It was painfully obvious she was avoiding his gaze. He sighed impatiently.

"Saaakura," he said lightly, gently tilting her chin up towards him so she would look into his charcoal black eyes. She blushed very attractively. Sasuke had a little more difficulty with swallowing at that moment.

"Tell me."

She tried to glare at him, but found she was too distracted by his proximity to be mad anymore. Besides, it wasn't his fault Naruto had gone and said something to him about it, not to mention full on chased after him over it. He, at least, deserved to know. As a member of team seven of course, she told herself. But only because of the team.

"We were on our way back from Iwa..."

So, she retold him what had happened in the forest from the point they had heard the explosion go off...

* * *

"You think maybe he's a relative of his?" Sasuke asked once Sakura and Sai had finished explaining. Sai shook his head.

"We don't know anything for sure. Sakura said we shouldn't jump to conclusions, and advised we stay out of it altogether."

"That would be the smart thing to do, yes," Sasuke nodded at Sakura in approval. She smiled at him.

Ever since Sasuke had decided to rejoin the side of the village, he was easier to reach out to and talk to. It was like he was actually trying to earn comradeship among the shinobi now, instead of playing off his I'm-better-than-you act. It was refreshing, and even though most of the village did not trust him, Sakura was eagerly willing to get to know the changed Sasuke he had become since the war. Though she also knew that Sasuke's new ambition was to become Hokage instead of Naruto so he could change the village as he saw fit, but that didn't stop her from trying to re-connect with her long lost teammate.

"But, the Hokage may know something about it now, since that was where he told the three of you he was headed..." Sasuke rubbed his chin thoughtfully, trying to not give away how curious he actually was about it. It wasn't every day that Kakashi potentially had such a huge secret under his belt. Sasuke, Sai, and Sakura glanced over at Naruto who groaned loudly as he heaved himself up and rubbed his jaw, which was immensely swollen from Sakura's earlier blow.

"Let's go ask granny Tsunade, then!" Naruto clumsily crawled over to his friends, who were sitting under the shade of a tree near the three log posts. He looked at the center one and smiled at the memories from their first test at the training grounds. Then he frowned when he recalled being tied to that particular post for trying to cheat on the test by attempting to eat their ex-sensei's lunch.

"No chance," Sakura glowered at him. "We'll just be on the sidelines in case anything goes down. I'm not saying we shouldn't look into it..." she said with a curious and mischievous shine in her eyes. "I'm just saying we should lie low and act like nothing weird has happened. _Especially_ around Kakashi-sensei."

"What's going on with me 'especially'?" An all-too familiar and aloof voice came from the tree above them.

Everyone froze, and shivers ran up their arms as they looked up and met the chilling gaze of their old sensei. How much had he heard of their conversation? Sai's reaction was as unreadable as ever.

"Yo," Kakashi gave a salute and an eye-crinkle smile that was not sincere in any way whatsoever. Everyone gulped.

* * *

Kareno lazily strolled down one of the roads that went into the village market squares. Slipping his hands into their usual spot, in his pockets, he took in everything around him.

Many buildings were in bad shape, with sometimes just the roof tops missing, and other times whole chunks of houses were a crumbled heap in the dirt below. In some lots, marred foundations were all that were left of the buildings that once stood there. The sky was bright and the sun was beating down on many of the citizens who were doing their best to reconstruct their village. The hot tears and sweat of dedicated civilians could be felt in their hard labors, and Kareno admired their courage and strength to keep moving forward despite all the chaos that had happened.

Even though it had been so long ago, and he had been very small, Kareno realized the streets weren't anywhere near as busy as they used to be. Much of the population of not just Konoha, but many other villages too, had gone down significantly, thanks to the war against Madara.

_'Quite a lot has changed since I last saw this place,' _Kai observed with him. He nodded to himself in agreement.

"Sure has," he said under his breath so as to not be heard from the other villagers. Most people would probably think he was simply thinking out loud, but he would rather be safe than sorry.

'_Rinerra would be heartbroken to see the village in this state...'_

"If that's true, then why did she leave everyone?" Kareno retorted darkly.

'_Kareno, you don't know your mother the way I do,' _Kai defended harshly.

"Gee, I only know that all too well, now don't I?" He balled up his fists, trying his best to ignore the lonely ache in his heart.

'_Why must you attack everything I say?'_ she sighed in disappointment. '_Pretty defensive for a eleven-year old...'_

"Because you don't understand me, and will never care to."

'_As it should be. I'm a tailed wolf demon, Kareno. Not your babysitter.'_

"Well I'm not yours either, nor am I yours to boss or order around as you please," he reminded her curtly.

'_Whether you like it or not, even if I __didn't __happen to be sealed inside of you, which I am, courtesy of your mother, your nature is naturally that of a dominant wolf; a leader, a loner. We're more similar than you realize,'_ Kaireya pointed out. She hated to admit that what seemed to be his stubborn nature was actually, in fact, dominance. It was why the two were always clashing like oil on water.

"I never said I did or didn't like it. But I am not an animal like you," he snarled in, ironically, a very wolf-like manner.

'_If you don't watch yourself, you very well could be...'_

"Can we just stop, please?" he said quietly, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets with an upset frown on his face. Kai could sense the fear and troubled sadness in his heart from the conversation. Thanks to Rinerra being her previous host, she had grown softer than most demons or tailed-beasts should be, so she didn't continue the exchange any further, as he wished. As much as she didn't get along with this boy, she could tell he needed her. Especially since the darkness in his strong, beating heart was only growing...

* * *

Kakashi finished securing the knot in the rope. Standing back, he admired his work proudly.

"Looks like I win," he smiled at the four unfortunate shinobi who had decided to not answer his question and remain silent. Their heads hung low in shame. To be caught in such a childish manner all at once by their old teacher, it was a little more than humiliating.

Kakashi crouched down on the ground so that he was eye-level with his students who were, he chuckled to himself, a bit tied up at the moment. Ever-fiery Sakura stared at him coldly, and Sasuke refused to look him in the face. Naruto and Sai looked at each other.

"You know the deal. I won this match, so one of you break the silence already and tell me what's going on, hm?"

He was having too much fun with this. It wasn't often that he could torment his favorite shinobi like this anymore. He was savoring every moment of this victory, soaking it in like a sponge with water.

"We never agreed to anything!" Sakura bellowed, trying to break free from the bonds of the ropes. Sasuke and Naruto groaned in pain next to her.

"Stop struggling! Your movements are giving us rope burns!"

"Captain Kakashi, why is this important to you?" Sai complained. "I don't see how you find this funny."

"Oh trust me, Sai, it's pretty damn hilarious," Kakashi grinned triumphantly.

Before Kakashi could ask again, a poof of smoke suddenly appeared behind him. Shikamaru stepped forward and opened his mouth to speak, until he saw Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and Sai all tied up on the ground. He gave Kakashi a questioning look.

"Just teaching them a lesson on not to gossip about others," Kakashi whistled cheerfully, resting his hands on his hips.

"Right...well, the Hokage is summoning you, Kakashi-sensei," Shikamaru said lazily. "Says it's urgent."

"It's always urgent, Shika. It makes people feel like they need to go there as quickly as possible. Tell her I'll be there a little later."

"She told me if you didn't come back with me immediately, I was to drag you back with me."

While Kakashi knew Shikamaru was a genius and could probably figure out a way to drag him there, he figured whatever is was Tsunade wanted him for, it wasn't really all that urgent.

As if Shikamaru was reading his thought process, he did a quick hand formation and caught Kakashi's shadow, connecting it with his own. Kakashi found it rather annoying to suddenly have his will over his own body taken away from him. He sighed.

"Ah. I see how it is. Alright, looks like I don't have much of a choice now, do I?"

Kakashi began to move towards the village at the same time as Shikamaru. Naturally, since their shadows were still connected. Apparently the lazy village genius wasn't about to give him control of his own body back anytime soon, so he obediently went with it.

"Hey! What about us?!" Naruto yelled after them. Shikamaru ignored him and kept going. Orders were orders after all. Kakashi would have at least looked back over his shoulder at them, but he had to do with just yelling back loud enough for them to hear as he could not turn his head.

"Well maybe next time you'll respect your old sensei and answer a simple question, eh?"

"YOU LAZY OLD PERVERT!" Sakura and Naruto screamed at him angrily. He smiled to himself as they got farther and farther away, causing the voices' of his old students to grow quieter until he could no longer hear them. Shikamaru let out a deep sigh.

Once they were in the village, Shikamaru released his jutsu on the elite Jounin.

"I'm really glad you were never _my_ sensei."

"Oh you're just envious of how lucky they were to have had me as their teacher," Kakashi replied proudly. Shikamaru sighed again.

"What a drag..."

* * *

Kareno continued to walk around idly. He didn't really have a destination in mind; he just wanted to kill time until he could speak with the Hokage again. What had been up with her reaction, anyway?

'_Perhaps Sarutobi was leaving you in the dark about some things,' _Kai suggested. She had a pretty good idea of what was going on, but unless he asked her, she wasn't about to tell him everything just like that. She owed this boy nothing.

"Perhaps," Kareno mumbled. Without realizing he had gotten so wrapped up in his thoughts that he was no linger paying attention to his surroundings, he ran directly into someone from behind.

"Whoa, oops! Sorry about that!" Kareno quickly apologized to the tall man.

"Don't worry about it," the stranger replied awkwardly. He looked down and smiled reassuringly, then did a double-take.

"You kids these days with your shinobi idols," the lean ninja chuckled and shook his head, "though I must admit that's pretty close to the real thing. Nicely done, I'm flattered," he fluffed Kareno's hair playfully, to which Kareno immediately pulled away in surprise and blocked the top of his head with his hands, feeling extremely jumbled at the unexpected and confusing words and actions of the older, gray-haired man.

Before he had the chance to ask him what he had meant, the man disappeared into a cloud of smoke. Kareno coughed a few times before gathering his thoughts back together.

_'Eh?'_

"What the heck was that about?"

_'I think he thought you were a fan of his,' _Kai chuckled.

"What would give him such an idea?" Kareno asked, exasperated. Then a thought struck him.

"Oh..."

_'You did look quite similar to him. Not a lot of people have naturally silver hair, ya know.'_

* * *

A light rap on the door made Tsunade look up from the papers she had studied carefully for the past few hours. This was the third time someone had come to knock on her door since she had sent Shizune to summon Kakashi, and each time it hadn't been him. So help her if he was late like usual to a matter this urgent she would-

"Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked as he opened the door to the office and entered. Tsunade sighed tensely.

"You're a little late, Kakashi," she scolded.

"My apologies, Lady Tsunade. I couldn't help but stop along the way when I saw a kid who had tried to dress like me and even copied the hair color. It was fun to see that young kids these days still have idols-"

"Enough with the excuses all the freaking time Kakas- wait, did you say this kid had your hair color?"

"Um, yes?" Kakashi answered, unsure of why that was important. "Though he wore it a little differently I suppose."

"Kakashi, did this boy say anything to you?" Tsunade asked, trying to not sound like she was interrogating him.

"No...? He apologized for running into me from behind, but that was to be expected I guess."

"Hatake-san," Tsunade interrupted. He gave her an odd look. "We have something very important to discuss. You may want to sit down..."

"I'll be fine, Hokage-sama."

"I insist, Kakashi. No, in fact, I **order** you to grab a chair and sit in it. Please. You'll be thankful you did," she said softly. Kakashi's eyes grew wide.

"Tsunade-sama, has something happened?" He asked somewhat nervously, pulling a chair out from one of the side desks and bringing it around to face the Hokage. He took his seat and put his hands together, leaning forward to give her his undivided attention. Something was wrong; he could read the concern on her face. She looked down at a small stack of papers in her hands, and then looked back up at him.

"Kakashi, did Rinerra ever tell you at some point that she was pregnant with your son?"

* * *

At first, he had no idea how to respond to a question like that. It felt like someone had kicked him in the gut, hard, and knocked all the air out of his lungs. All he could do was stare at her.

"My…what?" He asked barely above a whisper, not quite sure if the Hokage was playing an absolutely non-funny prank on him or if she was being dead serious.

She inhaled slowly, and then exhaled just as slowly, meeting his gaze evenly but with sympathy. "Your son, Kakashi. According to this top-secret information I have right here in my hands from the Third Hokage, Rinerra was discovered to be with child when you were still in the Anbu. You would have been twenty years of age at the time…" she said slowly, letting this piece of information sink in. If it weren't for the chair, Kakashi would have collapsed to the floor. The strength in legs was completely gone, and he found himself having difficulty with breathing normally.

"Deep breaths. Stay with me Kakashi, I can't have you passing out in front of me right now," she told him. "You need to hear this, since it very much involves you."

"How could this happen?" He finally found enough courage to speak, though his voice was still barely audible. "How could this happen, and she not tell me?"

"I couldn't tell you that myself," Tsunade said sadly, watching one of her brightest and best shinobi falling apart right in front of her eyes. It wasn't easy to watch. "She probably had her reasons Kakashi..."

"But-! This-!" He tried to stand up, but failed miserably as he clutched the chair so hard that his knuckles turned white. He didn't know what to feel right now. Anger? Sadness? Joy? Betrayal? His mind and heart were racing a million miles an hour. He hadn't seen her in years, and he had loved her. Still did love her, unconditionally. And she couldn't tell him something as important as her being pregnant?! He gripped the chair harder, accidentally smashing some of the furnished wood under his grasp. Pieces of wood and splinters fell around him. Tsunade continued to meet his gaze evenly and coolly.

"According to this, she had kept Sarutobi posted on what was going on. The details are all in here, Kakashi..." She offered the papers towards him to read. He wasn't sure what he'd find in them, but he had to know, so he grabbed them without hesitating.

It was in the Third Hokage's handwriting, he noted. It started with an address to the future Hokage of the Hidden Leaf.

**_To whomever is now in the honored position of being the Leaf's new Hokage,_**

_**This report is top-secret; S-rank for classification of status. Rinerra (Kuutetsuki) Kosuke, a trusted ally and friend of the village hidden in the leaves, as well as the last surviving member of her ancient clan, has confirmed that she is with child. The father has been established to be Kakashi Hatake. This is a very exciting day for the new family, but the situation is a very complicated and possibly dangerous one.**_

Kakashi continued, his heart pounding in his chest.

**_The mother of the unborn child is a Jinchuuriki of the tailed wolf demon, an ancient and powerful beast named Kaireya that was believed to be merely a myth for hundreds of years. The ancient Kuutetsuki clan was responsible for the beast and keeping it secret from the world through any means necessary. I do not have the details of such procedures. The history of the clan, if not known, can be found through history books in the village if more details of the clan's background is desired. But the clan was destroyed some one-hundred and fifty years ago by a rival clan. The clan was thought to be extinct until one day; a girl claiming to be the last member of the clan came to the village and swore allegiance to the Shodai Hokage, Hashirama Senju. The clan's powers were said to be vast and powerful, but no one knows exactly what the potential of the Kuutetsuki clan is since it has long been thought to be completely ended. Rinerra did make it known that age and time run differently among her clan, so they are able to and can live for incredibly long amounts of time. Sometimes for hundreds of years. In the royal branch of the clan, one child to inherit, usually a girl, was chosen to be the host of the tailed wolf demon, as well as be the keeper and matriarch of the clans secrets…_**

Yes, yes, he knew this part. He scanned down the page impatiently, skipping some of the details of Rin's and her clan's background.

**_There are dangers with a female Jinchuuriki being with child. There is the possibility the beast may break free of its seal in the host and run rampage, which would automatically kill the host and child. We have learned this first-hand with the tragic battle against the Nine-tails six years ago. It has been requested on my confidence that this information is to be kept confidential between me, the third Hokage, and Rinerra. She is to leave the village with her unborn child and act as a free agent spy among the Akatsuki, where she and another spy among them will work together as secret allies. He will help her get in without suspicion, and will have the child in secret with a medic who she has reassured me will not speak of it to anyone. I trust her with my life on this._**

Kakashi swallowed hard. He remembered when he had figured out she had joined the Akatsuki that had been after the tailed beasts. A painful lump formed in his throat at the memory of those dark days.

**_Joining the Akatsuki will give her the best chance of survival as well as protection. It is our logic that a Jinchuuriki would never join the Akatsuki since their goal, according to the sanin Ninja Jiraiya's sources, that this organization is planning to gather the tailed beasts for a plan of theirs that has yet to be discovered. Under this assumption, Rinerra will be safe and will not be suspected of being the host of the most notoriously dangerous demon._**

**_In conclusion, once the child is born, she will raise it in secret until the child is old enough to come to the village to be in our care. Upon hearing this, I proposed she return to the village in disguise with the child when the time is right. She expressed that the father, Kakashi Hatake, was to be kept unaware of these events to protect him and the child from harm. I am proud to say our village is honored by the incredible example of such a courageous and self-sacrificing shinobi._**

The lump in his throat grew significantly bigger and more painful. His eyes began to sting at the incredible revelation before him. He turned to the next page, which was much shorter than the first page had been.

**_I have received a report from Rinerra, who is currently under the protection and guidance of the organization 'Akatsuki.' The child was born last week, in November on the 13_****_th_****_. Healthy weight and length. Male. Significant feature: silver-white hair, like the father's. Bright blue eyes. The delivery was a success. Had complication with the seal breaking. _**

Kakashi's heart lept to his throat. Complications? He hadn't been able to even be there with her to help her through it all. For the first time in a long time, Kakashi felt like he might lose it.

**_Emergency transfer of the tailed demon from the mother to the son was necessary to carry out in order for both to live. Sealing was a success. Mother no longer the host of the wolf demon. The new host is the son of Rinerra and Kakashi. His name is to be Kareno Rai Hatake, after the father. A birth certificate has been made and put on file in location xxx-xxx-xxxx-xx. It has been decided the child will not remain in the Hidden Leaf when he is snuck into the village by his mother. Once five years of age, he will be brought to me. This is the decided time. It is my plan to send him out to all the villages of the five great nations to learn and train and gain knowledge through them all, and perhaps even create new alliances with the other nations. His mother will give him further instruction on how to accomplish this and complete the mission successfully. He will return to the Hidden Leaf once he has accomplished this incredible feat. If I am no longer alive at this time, I trust you, the new Hokage, to carry on after me and see to it that this boy remain in the leaf village as a welcomed, official citizen until further notice from the mother is sent. This concludes the report…_**

Kakashi didn't bother reading the Third's official closing of the paper. He buried his face in his hands, letting the report fall to the floor with a silent crinkle. He was shaking visibly, Tsunade could see. But she had absolutely no idea how to comfort him. This wasn't exactly a common situation they were dealing with here, but she knew he must be an absolute mess inside.

"Hmhpsh owldm iesh heimph mnorw?" Kakashi mumbled into his hands, which were still tightly covering his face.

"Pardon?"

"How old is he now?" He lifted his head up and met her gaze, his eyes red-rimmed and full of a thousand different emotions at once.

"He was born a couple of months after your twenty-first birthday, so he should be about eleven years old now. It's November 15th," she answered gently.

Kakashi got up and walked over to the wall, placing his clenched fists on it above him and lowering his head. He closed his eyes tightly, trying to figure out how to handle all the mixed pain and nervousness he was feeling at once. All this time, and he had no idea what was really going on. All this time…His heart was killing him.

Tsunade rose from her chair and walked over to the man who was barely keeping it together. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"He arrived in the village today," Tsunade told him softly. She usually felt awkward when it came to having to act all soft and mushy, but Kakashi just had his life flipped upside down from under his feet, so she did her best to step outside of her comfort zone for him. He immediately turned his head to look at her.

"When...?"

"About 3 hours or so ago. That's why I wondered about the boy you had run into earlier. I think that might have been him."

Holy shit! He had thought it was simply some village kid who admired him and therefore had tried to copy him. But that hadn't been the case at all. Had he really been right there, and not known it was his son? It felt so weird to think that. _His _son.

"Holy fucking shit..." Kakashi gasped and nearly collapsed.

Tsunade offered to guide him back to the chair, but he shook his head, and instead went and scooped up the papers into his hands.

"Do you mind if I borrow this for tonight? I might need to read it several times for it to-"

"Go right ahead, I understand. I had to do the same thing. Just be sure you return them when you can," she smiled at him warmly. "Just, please, whatever you do don't go and do anything stupid."

He nodded, only half-listening to the rest of her words once he got the permission he asked for. He turned and pulled the door with him rather powerfully, causing it to slam shut behind him. A painting or two fell off the walls and crashed to the floor. Tsunade rubbed her temples over and over and let out a long groan. Shizune entered in a little timidly a minute after Kakashi had stormed out.

"What on earth did you do to him?" She asked, shocked by the expression she had seen on the usually carefree man's face.

"Long, _long_ story…and I don't plan to relive it again right now..." she grunted. "Shizune?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"Bring me the biggest bottle of Sake we've got! I am in dire need of a good and thorough drinking right now..."

* * *

Unsure of what to do with himself or where to go, Kakashi found himself letting his feet take him wherever they pleased. He didn't want to have to think about where he was going. The only things on his mind at that moment were the love of his life; whom he hadn't seen in a painfully long time, and the new discovery that he and her had a son. It sounded so foreign to him; he couldn't help repeating it over and over in his mind.

He stopped walking when he found himself not far from the memorial stone he used to visit every morning. He would have walked right up to it out of habit if his heart hadn't stopped dead in his chest at what he saw in front of him.

Directly in front of the stone, not twenty feet away, was the boy with silver-white hair that he had run into earlier.

* * *

**Author's Notes! :)**

And thus concludes chapter two! What did you think so far? I won't beg for reviews but honestly they would really help me a lot if you did write some :) Let me know what you amazing readers out there are thinking! Any questions, just pm me or something. I will get right to work on typing up and publishing chapters 3 and 4 as soon as I possibly can. I promise there will be more romance and such involved too. Thanks for your support and encouragement! You guys make my day every day! Love you all!

~Rin-chan

P.s. Yes I know Rin is in this story as well, I took my other character's name and used it for my profile. :p :)


	3. CHAPTER THREE: The Apple and the Tree

**Disclaimer:** Masashi Kishimoto is the rightful owner to the original Naruto series and characters in it; I do not own the series or its characters in any way. I do own my own characters I created, however, so do not copyright my work.

**Warning:** Spoilers, since I try to keep my story up with the manga a little bit. I like having it be as close to the original series as I can, okay? :D Again, this story is written out more like a novel, so if you're looking for short stories, you might want to look elsewhere.

I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get the next chapter up you guys! It has been a very crazy past week or so, I have had barely enough time to eat most days! :(

So things are going to be a little busier for a while, but I will do my best to get in at least 1-2 chapters a week! That is my goal, and I've got my delicious rice crackers here with me to keep me going! :)

I love your reviews! Please write a quick review to let me know what you guys think so far! Us authors get excited when we get to see what people think of our stories! :) It keeps us motivated to keep writing. And thank you so much for the 500+ views already! I am so happy!

So now that Kakashi knows the real truth about Rinerra's disappearance from so many years ago, what will he do about the situation? Will he accept him? Read to find out!

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE: The Apple and the Tree**

* * *

Kareno stared at the unique monument that, in his opinion, had one-too many names carved into its surface. He had quickly realized the metallic, kunai-shaped stone honored the deaths of shinobi who had given up their lives for the safety of the village. He took a step closer and ran a curious hand over the stone. It's surface was smooth and somewhat glossy, like polished marble. He took a step back and bowed his head respectfully.

Padded footsteps suddenly came from behind, and Kareno turned to see who had snuck behind him. But, there was no one there. Just a slight Autumn breeze which ruffled his hair as it floated by. He ran his fingers through his silver mop, and then felt something paw at his shoes. He looked down.

"You called, master?" the tiny dog asked with a sleepy yawn, lazily scratching behind his ear. Kareno blinked slowly, once. Then twice. Then three times. He crouched down so that he was much closer to the heavy-eyed pug, and then poked him in the nose experimentally. The dog grunted in annoyance, about to remind him that he knew better than to mess with his pet peeve of being poked in the face. Then he looked up and realized it wasn't his master at all.

"Oh...wrong human," he said in a peculiar tone. He seemed confused. Kareno grinned at the little pug.

"You talk very well for a ninja hound," he patted the pug on the head. He got a lopsided grin in return.

"And you smell very much like master."

Circling around him several times, Pakkun detected very similar scents to that of his usual summoner. Very interesting. He wagged his tail.

"Pakkun!" A voice called out from a group of trees. Both of their heads turned in the direction it had come from.

Kakashi stepped out of the shadows and walked towards them with ease, though Pakkun knew better. He could smell the chemical reaction going on in his master's body. What on earth was Kakashi so nervous for? He could trace abnormal amounts of fear in him. Pakkun whimpered uncomfortably.

Dogs were sensitive creatures; if their master or owner was producing a lot of negative energy, the dog, almost in sync, would feel vulnerable or uncomfortable and tense. Kareno scooped up the pug in his arms and held him protectively away from the intruding stranger.

"Who are you?" Kareno asked, turning to face the familiar-looking man.

"Ah. Sorry, I was just looking for my ninken," Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck in an aloof manner. "I'm Kakashi Hatake, and I think you have what I'm looking for."

* * *

Moments before he had stepped out of his hiding spot in the vegetation, Kakashi had tried to figure out some way of approaching the boy indirectly. He normally wouldn't condone such a show of cowardice from himself by hiding from someone, but his nerves had gotten the better of him.

So, he had decided he would summon Pakkun and tell the little ninja hound to pretend to wander around like a little lost puppy, no pun intended. He would then lamely pretend to come out from his spot looking for the little dog, who would happen to be right next to the boy at the memorial stone. But once he had actually activated the summon, Pakkun had appeared right in front of the boy. Kakashi hadn't anticipated that flaw, but played it off as best he could. He would just have to explain to Pakkun later. He stepped out of the shadows.

* * *

"You're Hatake-san?" Kareno gasped, gently putting the pug on the ground. Pakkun sat on the grass and looked back and forth between the kid and his master, unsure of what was going on.

"Yes, I am."

Kareno studied him as if really seeing this man for the first time. When Kakashi had approached him, he instantly recognized it was the same shinobi who he had bumped into at the market, but hadn't known at the time that that man was the one person he had been anxiously waiting to meet his whole life. It seemed so unreal, standing right in front of the very person who was supposedly his father. Kakashi had silver hair like him, but his was spiky in different directions, unlike Kareno's which hung down past his ears. He had a scar over his left eye, but it seemed as though he could see out of both of them just fine. He remembered hearing somewhere that Kakashi was widely known as the copy ninja, or Kakashi of the Sharingan. But both of his eyes were a deep grey, and watched him with intense curiosity. He'd have to ask about that one later.

He was tall and lean, and the atmosphere around him screamed that he was an authoritative leader, as well as a deadly ninja. But his posture gave the impression that he was aloof and relaxed. It was so contradicting that it left Kareno slightly wary and intimidated. This man was his father, though, and he wouldn't let such observations keep him from enjoying this reverent moment.

Neither of them said anything. They just studied each other curiously. Kareno got the impression that Kakashi knew about him being his son. He wondered what he thought of that, and what he thought of him, just as Kakashi was curious as to what Kareno made of him, his father.

The air was thick with tension. Kareno shuffled his feet in the dirt before meeting the grey-eyed gaze of Kakashi.

"You know my mother, Rinerra, don't you?" Kareno gently broke the careful silence. Kakashi stared at him for a moment longer before nodding his head.

"Of course. I've known her my whole life. But so much has happened since I last saw her...like you, for example," he gestured towards Kareno, who wasn't sure if the man sounded happy or sad about it.

"Master, who is this boy?" Pakkun trotted over to Kakashi, feeling as confused as ever about the conversation taking place.

"That, Pakkun, is my son," Kakashi replied slowly, quietly, as he slipped his hands into his trousers.

Pakkun's eyes nearly popped out of his head in surprise, and he quickly turned to study the boy in new light of this information. He trotted over and sniffed the boy again, confirming the strong resemblance to his master.

"When did you decide to have Rin as your mate?" Pakkun asked with innocent curiosity. Kakashi's face flushed in embarrassment from being asked such a question in front of his son. Kareno didn't seem disturbed by it though. Rather, he seemed slightly amused. Kakashi relaxed a fraction more, grateful that his son was more mature than most at his age were.

"Another time, Pakkun. I'd like to talk to Kareno alone, if you don't mind." He wasn't really asking for permission. He stated it in a way that was more of an order to the little ninken. Used to it, Pakkun simply nodded.

"See ya around then." And with a poof of smoke, the ninja pug vanished.

Kakashi walked towards Kareno and stood next to him, staring ahead at the stone. Kareno stared at Kakashi, and then followed his father's gaze to the names carved on the monument.

"Some of your friends' names are on here, aren't they?" He asked sympathetically, already understanding at his age the pain of losing comrades. Kakashi glanced at him curiously for a moment, and then looked back down at the stone.

"Yeah. But it's part of the life of a shinobi. I was finally able to come to terms with their deaths, and I no longer have any regrets," he said softly, running his gloved hand over the surface of the stone, much like Kareno had done when he had first stumbled upon the monument. Kareno sensed there was a great deal of experience and memories behind those words, but felt it would be impolite to ask about it, so he remained silent and once again bowed his head in respect to the memorial.

After some time, the two of them turned away and headed back towards the village. Kareno walked by his side, the curiosity burning inside of him at what his ever-silent father was thinking. Would he accept him, or turn him away? Did this man even want a son? Was it okay to walk with him like this?

Kakashi must have sensed his unease because he put a gloved hand on Kareno's shoulder and stopped walking. Kareno stopped as well, staring unsurely at the hand resting on him.

"Look, it doesn't matter what happened in the past. The fact is, I have just found out that I am the proud father of a fine-looking shinobi," he flushed a little in embarrassment, and Kareno looked down in flattered surprise. Kakashi usually didn't praise people so highly. He wasn't even sure if he was doing it correctly at the moment. "And I intend to take on the responsibility of being the father you need. You need to understand that. I don't run away from things, especially something as big as this. I know this is not easy, and we don't even really know each other. But, the fact remains that you are my son, and I will do my best to love you and treat you as such."

Kareno stood there with his mouth hanging open at such a speech, though anyone who saw him would have difficulty in being able to tell that, courtesy of the dark mask that covered his face, much like Kakashi's did. He noticed how uncomfortable Kakashi was, and realized with even greater surprise that this man wasn't use to saying such things to people. He did his best to not let the surge of happiness and relief flood his expression and simply nodded at Kakashi.

"Thank you, D-Dad," Kareno stuttered on the last word, testing the way it sounded on his own lips. He couldn't help but smile at the sound of it, and Kakashi followed shortly after. He reached out and ruffled Kareno's hair playfully before withdrawing his hand off of Kareno's shoulder. Kareno made little noises of protest, and Kakashi chuckled at the way he could already irk his son by teasing him.

"So, Kareno Hatake is your full name?" He began walking again. Kareno followed.

"Technically, yes? Though, Mom actually gave me the incredibly long name of: Kareno Rai Hatake Kuutetsuki. She wanted me to inherit your surname as well as her clan's."

"I see."

"Yeah, it's a mouthful," he sighed. Kakashi chuckled at the miffed expression on Kareno's face.

They continued on towards the village, enjoying the peace of the warm wind whispering through the red, gold, and brown trees. A single, green leaf brushed Kakashi's cheek before being carried off by a gust towards the monument. He turned and watched it for a brief time, observing it as it made its final landing at the base of the memorial stone. He smiled to himself, and then turned his back once again to join Kareno on the walk back to the gates of Konoha.

Short, brown hair and a white skirt swayed in breeze. A broad smile played on the purple-striped cheeks of the young, transparent girl who sat atop the stone, watching over her old friend, now a father, with his son, walking away side by side.

* * *

**_A week and-a-half passes by…_**

* * *

Kareno squinted against the bright light, which was shining into his room from the crack under his door. He was getting used to the early morning routine by now, but even he wasn't happy about getting up at 6:00AM every day. Before coming to Konoha, he would normally get up no later than 7:00AM, which was plenty early for him. But he was no longer on his several-year-long mission, so he was going to have to get used to quite a lot of changes.

He sat up slowly and stretched his arms above his head as he yawned. Dropping his arms back down limply onto the bed covers, he looked around him at all the sleeping faces of Kakashi's ninja hounds. He smiled sleepily to himself as he recalled how excited they all were when they had first met their master's "new puppy." They followed him around the house a lot, and they were always trying to play with him. As much as he enjoyed it, he knew his dad wasn't too keen on how his deadly hounds had become such softies overnight. It wasn't that Kakashi was angry about it in the least, though. If anything, Kareno thought it secretly made his father happy.

Carefully, he slipped out from the covers and tip-toed around the snoring dogs. He almost tripped and landed right on top of Bull, the biggest and heaviest one of the pack. He managed to catch himself though, before he proceeded to stumble into the door. He cringed at the sudden noise, but sighed in relief when he realized it hadn't phased a single canine in the room. He opened the door just wide enough for him to pass through, and then he slipped into the other room and quietly closed the door behind him.

On the other side, he was blinded by the lit up hallway. He lazily dragged his feet into the living room, avoiding the coffee table in the center near some couches, then turned and hopped up on a tall chair that sat beneath the bar connecting to the kitchen. Kareno liked the size of his new home. It wasn't huge, but it wasn't uncomfortably tiny either.

There were a lot of books on some bookshelves which stood on either side of a flat-screen TV. Plants were set in random places throughout the place, and there were flower boxes that lined the windows. The couches and table in the living room looked very nice, as far as Kareno could judge with home decor. Overall he would judge his dad to be very neat and organized.

"Good morning," Kakashi, who was already dressed and ready for the day, grinned at him before turning back to whatever he was frying in the pan in front of him. Kareno couldn't avoid the yawn that suddenly came.

"Mornin' dad..." he mumbled somewhat sleepily in reply, resting his face on his folded arms on the bar. He found during the past week how much he liked being able to finally call someone his father. He couldn't help but smile to himself, and said it whenever he could. Kakashi was also surprised to find that he very much liked being given the title "Dad" as much as Kareno loved calling him that.

"You almost missed the most delicious breakfast in the whole world," Kakashi teased dryly. Kareno grinned.

"What a shame that would have been, not being able to get a taste of your delightful grade AA over-easy eggs on toast, with bacon, and then with some milk to down it all."

"Hey now! You say it as if you can get my special, one-of-a-kind of breakfast just anywhere. **_I_** beg to differ," Kakashi retorted and stuck his nose up in the air dramatically like a proud peacock that refused to have his ego bruised. Kareno couldn't help but laugh out loud at the ridiculous show.

Kakashi piled the two plates with the food, then served them on the bar as he sat next to Kareno. They put their hands together and gave the usual thanks of "Itadakimasu!" before pulling down their masks and digging in.

The two of them seemed to immediately be at ease with the other's presence in the time they had spent with each other. Kakashi had forgone his mask the first day Kareno had stayed with him. He felt no need in hiding himself from his son, and Kareno usually went without his mask like Kakashi did when the two of them were at home. Seeing as how neither of them really knew each other, it was easier to start a relationship without secrets, including what was behind their masks. They each had many questions about each other as well as their pasts, but there was plenty of time to address such things later. First, they were just going to enjoy their new-found relationship they had as father and son.

A thought randomly struck Kareno as he finished off the last piece of his bacon.

"Don'td you fingd it'd sdtrange dat we bofth wear masksgm?" Kareno attempted to ask through a mouthful of food.

Kakashi shook his head disapprovingly. He understood clearly what his son had asked, but instead of answering him, he said, "Ask me again, when your mouth isn't full."

Kareno realized he had just done something very rude and quickly swallowed his mouth full of food, drinking it down with a glass of milk. He was about to ask again when Kakashi quickly cut him off.

"I know what you asked; I just wanted to check you on your manners, even if it's just me around. They say a lot about a shinobi's standing," he explained. Kareno nodded, not having thought about it in that way before. Living with Kakashi the past week and a half had given Kareno great insight on just how observant and knowledgeable his father really was. He already could tell he was going to learn a lot from him.

"To answer your question," Kakashi continued, mindlessly pushing some bacon around on his plate. "I did, in fact, find it a little peculiar that you chose that particular piece of apparel." With one chopstick, he pointed to the mask that hung loosely around Kareno's neck. "Considering I've worn one pretty much my whole life. But I figured that it was like how the saying goes:'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.' We must have similar taste."

Kareno grinned, his white teeth flashing in the absence of the mask. He nodded in agreement with Kakashi before gulping down the rest of his food. By the time he had finished, he noticed his father had too, and was already cleaning his dishes. Kareno went up to him and was about to take his turn when his Kakashi took his plate and started scrubbing it for him. Kareno looked up at him in curiosity.

"It's okay, I'll clean up breakfast. You go get washed up and ready. We have some things we have to do today," he smiled down at Kareno. Kareno had quickly learned that his father's smile was extremely contagious, and it made it impossible to not smile back at him. So with that, he, of course, smiled in return and thanked him before heading to the bathroom.

Not long after Kareno had shut the bathroom door behind him and started the shower, a light knock came from the front door. Kakashi finished drying off the dishes with a towel before setting them on the counter and placing his mask back on his face. He lightly wiped his hands on his Jounin shirt, since they were still a little damp from washing the plates, before turning the doorknob and opening the door. He didn't know what he had expected to find on the other side, but it certainly hadn't been this. The sudden fury and irritation in the air threatened to smother him.

"Ah, hello there," he rubbed the back of his neck, facing them in a hesitant manner. "I promise, I was actually planning on stopping by to see you later today and explain what has been going on." When no response came and the atmosphere remained unchanged, he gulped and added a barely audible "please don't kill me?"

* * *

As Kareno finished rinsing out the last of the shampoo from his hair, he went to turn the water off, but jumped in surprise when his hand met something furry instead. He quickly opened his eyes, instantly regretting in doing so as a tiny amount of shampoo ran down his face and into his eye. Yelping, he jerked back, causing his backside to slam into the tile wall at the back of the shower and hit his head on the hard surface. Whimpering in pain, he crouched down on the floor and furiously scrubbed at his eye, trying to make the unbearable stinging sensation stop. He heard a low chuckle from in front of him. He opened his good eye that wasn't hurting and met a pair of big, brown, amused ones.

"Pakkun, what are you doing in my shower?" he grumbled unhappily. The stinging sensation finally started to ebb away as he attempted to rinse his eye out with the hot water pouring out of the shower head. Pakkun waddled over and sat next to Kareno under the water, grinning at the soothing sensation of it running over his short fur.

"I haven't had the chance to bathe in over a week. Do you think you could scrub me down really quick before you hop out?"

"Is it just you, or does every one of you need a bath?" Kareno asked, looking towards the door through the glass walls that enclosed the shower, bracing himself in case the pack of dogs was about to come barging in. Pakkun shook his head.

"The others had a mission given to them this morning. It's just me," Pakkun wagged his tail, giving Kareno pleading eyes. Kareno sighed and lowered his head in defeat. He stood up and grabbed the bottle of shampoo that Pakkun's eyes were pointing to, then crouched back down, pouring a small amount onto his hand before scrubbing it into the overly-happy, ninja hound's back. Pakkun grunted in appreciation, and closed his eyes as he felt the dirt and grime in his fur loosen and leave his coat.

After he was thoroughly done scrubbing, Kareno rinsed his hands in the water and let Pakkun soak until the shampoo had completely washed away. He turned the water off, opened the glass door, and stepped out, with Pakkun following shortly after shaking out his fur.

Kareno grabbed a towel, and began drying himself off. He saved his hair for last, bending over and ruffling his hair with the white cloth until it was only slightly damp. His hair always spiked up in a goofy manner after he did this. As he peered into the fogged-up mirror, he realized it made his hair look just like his father's, only his eyes were a bright jade and Kakashi's were a cold gray.

No, not cold, his eyes were warm. And they started to look at Kareno fondly every time he had spent time with his dad, unlike the first few days where he had looked unsure and somewhat distant. Kareno smiled. Things had turned out much better than he had hoped in such a short time. When he had returned to the village after so many years, even he hadn't hoped for it to go so well.

Kareno felt a pair of eyes on him as he stared at his reflection. He turned to find Pakkun staring at him oddly.

"You really do look like him ya know, especially with your hair like that."

"Eh?" Kareno blinked a few times, and then rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, feeling slightly flattered at the thought of being so similar to his father, whom he already admired quite a bit.

He was about to say thank you when Pakkun bluntly added, "Even your _equipment_ is very much the same. You're lucky you got his best genes."

_'Eh? Equipment?' _Kareno wondered, not understanding what he was saying. Then he noticed Pakkun was staring lower than he would have liked. He followed his gaze down to his own groin. His face burned an absolutely bright shade of red when it finally registered in his still sleepy mind.

"EEEHH?! Pakkun! Don't look there!"

"I was just trying to-"

"And don't say such strange things I _don't_ need to know about! Like just how similar I am to _him!"_

"I merely meant it as a compliment!" the little ninja pug explained as Kareno swarmed Pakkun with a towel and began to dry him off and fluff him up. He tried to squirm away.

"Don't fight me! I'm trying to help you!" He grunted against the surprising strength of the little pug.

_'Heh, you're all a bunch of complete idiots,' _Kaireya chuckled darkly from somewhere deep in the recesses of his mind. Kareno always felt a little colder inside when she spoke, almost chilled.

_'I'm _**not** _an idiot! This dog just says weird things sometimes that he shouldn't!' _Kareno thought back at Kai. '_And what's with you talking all of a sudden? Getting lonely after staying quiet all the time?'_

_'I'm a demon wolf, dipshit, I don't get lonely.'_ Kai growled.

Pakkun saw Kareno was distracted and decided to seize the opportunity to make a run for it, doing his best to get away from the evil towel that always painfully snagged his fur when it was time to get dried off. In the process, he had knocked down some things on the counter and shelves, including a once-dry pair of pants and a shirt that Kareno had brought into the bathroom.

"Pakkun! Now my clothes are soaked!" He groaned, picking up the shirt and pants from the wet bathroom floor.

* * *

Kakashi sat in the chair facing both of the occupied couches in the living room. All eyes sat on him, anxiously waiting for him to say something. He merely smiled politely and pulled out his "Make-out Tactics" edition of Icha-Icha Paradise. He was quickly interrupted before he even finished the first sentence of the prologue.

"KAKASHIIII!" Gai shouted in frustration, slamming his foot down dangerously close to the refurbished coffee table. Kakashi, stared at his foot, then looked up at him as if everything was fine and dandy in the world.

"End this rumor, **ONCE AND FOR ALL**! As my rival, you must tell me; is it **true**?!"

Kakashi plugged his ears and flinched in a dramatic show of how annoyingly loud Gai-Sensei could be at times.

He was about to make some excuse as to how he didn't know what he was talking about when stubborn Kurenai seemed to have read his mind.

"Don't give us any bull, Kakashi. Tsunade has been suspiciously tight-lipped about the subject, and Naruto gave us plenty information to make us come over here and ask you about it, right before Sakura tried to play dumb about it. That all seems highly shady and, as our friend, we're asking you to simply tell us if what we heard is true."

He looked around the room, easily but unhappily accepting how out-numbered he was. He met the many pairs of familiar eyes he had grown up with. Kurenai, Gai, Genma, Tenzou, Shizune, Anko, and even Ibiki Morino, Konoha's top Anbu interrogator, were all gathered in his now-crowded living room, waiting for his answer. He sighed.

But before he could form any words though, the silence in the room was broken by a muffled cry from the bathroom. Everyone turned to look.

"EEEHH?! Pakkun! Don't look there!"

"I was just trying to-"

"And don't say such strange things I _don't_ need to know about! Like just how similar I am to _him!_"

"I merely meant it as a compliment!"

Loud scuffling and banging sounds echoed throughout the house. Some kept staring at the bathroom door, completely taken by the scene they could hear coming from that room. Others, like Kurenai, turned to look at Kakashi in complete confusion. All he did was shrug.

"Don't fight me! I'm trying to help you!" He could hear Kareno shout at his adorable little ninken pug.

_'Oh dear. He must have tried to dry him off with one of those towels,'_ Kakashi thought to himself.

More crashing and banging sounded off, and then a loud groan of frustration followed.

"Pakkun! Now my clothes are soaked!"

The door knob clicked and turned, and then the door slowly slid open. Pakkun bounded out first, running around in circles and scooting on his back across the floor over and over again. It was an amusing sight that usually had Kakashi smiling after Pakkun had a bath. But right now, he was focused on the reaction on everyone's faces, which had turned back to him, looking even more confused than before. Kakashi held his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, okay. Look, if you want answers, the answer will be walking out of that room any second now."

Right on cue, a drenched and unhappy kid, who looked like a mini version of Kakashi, stepped out from the steamy bathroom with a towel over is wet-clothed shoulders. His black tank top and pants were soaked in various places, but the mask covering the bottom-half of his face was dry as a bone. He shook his hair around until it wasn't spiky like Kakashi's anymore, and it fell loosely down his face. It was a moment later when he noticed he had an audience. His eyes grew wide in surprise.

"Kareno," Kakashi stood and walked over to his son, who looked like he wasn't enjoying the attention at all. He knew all too well how he was feeling. He hated being the center of attention in any situation. He preferred hiding in the shadows most of the time.

"Yes...?"

Kakashi slouched down to his son's height, then placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled, both of his eyes crinkling reassuringly. Kareno noticed that his dad still hadn't put on his vest or headband for the day, so he must have not been expecting this crowd.

"I want you to meet my friends and comrades. They are a gossipy bunch who have been suspicious about a certain rumor that has been flying around the village for a while now."

Everyone's shoulders slumped a little in shame. Being labeled as gossipers as a first impression to anyone was embarrassing.

"Why don't you introduce yourself?" Kakashi stood straight up and turned so he was facing the living room with Kareno.

Kareno confidently met the eyes of all in the room before politely bowing and announcing, "My name is Kareno Rai Hatake. It's an honor to meet all of you."

Kakashi didn't think it was possible for a dead silent room to grow even more still, but apparently it was. He supposed he would have had to face everyone eventually anyway, even if it was rather annoying and the shock wasn't a necessary response. Then again, he didn't deal with issues the same as anyone else he knew, so the shock may actually be expected. Besides, he'd rather get most of it sorted out all at once like this instead of having to explain to each individual who would happen to pass by him in the village.

Kareno hadn't even seen the main roads and markets of the village since before their meeting at the memorial near training ground 7. The two of them had gone outside the village on walks and had talked and even trained a little, but he had yet to take him into the heart of Konoha. He had usually stayed at home or had taken the dogs out to play. Even though Kakashi knew his son was already at the start of being molded into a shinobi, he wanted to try and preserve his childhood for as long as he could, seeing as how he hadn't had one himself.

"So it **IS **true!" Gai cried, literally cried, tears of joy as he pointed an obvious finger at poor Kareno, who was extremely taken aback and flabbergasted by Gai's strange and overwhelmingly odd mannerisms. "Kakashi Hatake, you have truly experienced the full power of youth!"

"I'd never thought I'd say this in my life, but it's nice to meet you, Kakashi's son," Tenzou walked over and greeted the young shinobi with a firm handshake and smile. Kareno smiled back, already liking the straightforward man.

Soon everyone had gathered around him and was excitedly greeting the new member of their village and future ninja corps. Pakkun was still sliding around, drying his fur on the carpet and panting happily at the sudden positive energy in the air.

Kakashi leaned against the wall near the TV and smiled at the scene before him. Someone nudged him on his left, and he turned to meet the red-eyed, shining gaze of Kurenai. She smiled at him warmly.

"You've done that more in the past hour than I've usually seen you do in a week's time."

"Do what?" He asked.

"Smile," she said happily. "And I don't mean just a grin or polite smile, but a _true _and genuine smile. Ya know, despite the mask that hides it."

"What of it?" Kakashi immediately replaced his expression with his usual carefree and aloof one, but the new light in his eyes gave him away.

"Nothing, I'm just glad to see you are finally and truly happy, and more at peace than you have ever been your whole life," she nudged him again gently, and then patted his shoulder before she walked over and joined the circle of friends.

Kakashi discreetly let another smile slip as he observed Kareno doing his best to listen to everyone at once. They all smiled at him and laughed and asked him endless questions. His son looked slightly overwhelmed, but happy. And that was enough to make the rest of Kakashi's day.

* * *

It was afternoon in Konoha, and after everyone had finally departed from the Hatake home, promising they would talk with Kareno again soon, Kakashi and Kareno headed out onto the village road.

Kakashi lived closer to the outskirts, near one of the village gates, so the walk into town wasn't exactly the shortest one.

Somehow, the citizens of Konoha had managed to repair almost every building and complex on the border of the village. They were slowly repairing their way inward, towards the badly damaged markets and Hokage tower. Miraculously, the mountain that had the Hokages' faces carved into its side had survived the blast from the ten-tails. That was the only thing had that gone almost completely unscathed, though. The rest was another story.

They walked along, Kakashi staring straight ahead with a cool expression.

Then there was Kareno; wide-eyed and soaking in everything around him as he had done the day he returned to the village. He recognized a few shops he had stopped at that day, along with a bright yellow building that was swarmed with cats in every window. He remembered the mental note he'd made to himself to stay as far away from that creepy building as he could.

After a few hours of shopping for supplies, food, and some new clothes for Kareno, they sat at the park and rested. Kareno watched the kids playing around by pretending to be strong warriors and fight each other, finding it quite entertaining. One little boy accidentally missed his opponent and swung right into the face of a little blonde girl who happened to be standing too close. She fell to the ground and yelled in pain. Kakashi and Kareno saw the whole thing, and before Kakashi had time to even react, Kareno had gotten up and walked over to the girl. Curious, Kakashi remained silent and watched from a distance.

Kareno stood over the whimpering girl, who was trying her best not to cry. Her friend who had accidentally hit her was trying to say sorry, but she shoved him away, not wanting to hear any of it. They finally looked up from the ground when they noticed a shadow looming over them. Frightened, the boy yelped and ran a good ten feet away, abandoning his friend. The girl looked like she felt trapped, afraid of what the stranger was going to do.

He crouched down to her level then smiled affectionately at her. She whimpered again and tried scooting back a little, scraping her hands on the rocks. Kareno suddenly held out a pink popsicle to the girl, who stared at it hungrily yet warily.

"It's okay, you can have it," Kareno tried to offer. The little girl shook her head.

"M-M-Mommy s-said I couldn't a-accept things from s-strangers," she said, hiccuping slightly between whimpers. She held her face where it was red and slightly swollen. It looked quite painful.

"Did she now?" Kareno smiled again before pulling down his mask and showing off his white teeth to the girl. She blushed slightly, suddenly aware of how handsome this nice boy was.

"Y-yeah..." she mumbled. Kareno couldn't help adoring her shyness.

"Well, my name is Kareno Hatake, and I'm a ninja," he pointed to himself. "What's your name?"

"My n-name is Yuuki Takura," she replied hesitantly. "But I'm not a ninja..." Kareno grinned and held out the Popsicle again.

"Well, since we're no longer strangers, please accept this. It'll make you feel better," he said. A huge grin split on Yuuki's face, and she took it from it gratefully. Kareno hoisted her up onto his shoulders as she snacked on the cold treat. She giggled and grabbed onto his hair for balance. It didn't bother Kareno in the slightest.

Kareno turned to look at the boy who had left her to cry in the rocks by the swing set.

"Who is your friend over there?"

"He's not my friend. That's my bwuvther," she glared sharply at her sibling. Kareno smirked.

"What's his name, cutie?" Kareno asked. Yuuki blushed.

"Suune," she told him bitterly. He chuckled at the unhappy tone in her voice before walking over, taking Yuuki off of his shoulders and carefully setting her down next to her brother. The boy named Suune looked at Kareno suspiciously.

"Okay Suune, what do you want to be when you get big?" Kareno suddenly asked. Suune apparently hadn't been expecting such a question, judging by the expression of surprise on his face.

"I want to be the mightiest warrior in all of the land of fire!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.

"Well, Suune, if you want to be the best warrior there is, you need to understand the importance of protecting the innocent and helpless. Abandoning your sister when I approached was not what a true warrior would have done," Kareno explained gently, noticing the tears of shame that were beginning to well up in Suune's eyes. "A real warrior never quits, and never abandons the ones he loves. That includes your friends and sister. Okay? Can you remember that as you grow up and get strong?"

Suune sniffled slightly and nodded his head, which was hanging low in shame. Kareno ruffled his hair and grinned.

"Good. Alright Yuuki, your brother will protect you from now on, you can count on him."

Yuuki glanced over at her brother, her expression softening into a smile until she tackled him with a big hug that knocked them both to the ground. While they were giggling at each other, Kareno slipped his mask back on and shoved his hands into his pockets. He turned and walked away to join his father who was now standing, waiting for Kareno.

After their fits of giggles, the two Takura twin siblings watched as the nice stranger was walking away with an older grown-up.

"Who was that guy, anyways?" Suune asked with a hint of admiration in his voice, pushing Yuuki off of him. Yuuki grinned and took another big bite out of the juicy popsicle.

"He told me his name is Kareno Hatake, and I've decided that he's going to be my future husband!" She squealed happily into her hands, her face turning pink as she pictured his handsome face all over again.

"He's going to be your WHAT?!" Suune bellowed.

"He was so nice and handsome and dreamy," she sighed in her little six-year-old voice, kicking her feet into the air as she lay in the grass. Suune groaned.

"I will never understand girls..." he grumbled quietly so that his twin sister couldn't hear him.

* * *

'_As much as you remind me of me,' _Kakashi thought to himself, watching Kareno from the corner of his eye. '_You also have the sweet side of your loving mother. Handling children seems to come as naturally to you as it did to her.'_

To say Kakashi had been surprised by Kareno's actions would be an understatement. He himself would have just told the boy to apologize and be more careful. His own son had taken care of it like a pro. He felt a little envious, which he knew was childish, but he couldn't help it. His social skills were, how should he put it, not as good as most people's.

They were almost back to the house to drop off their purchases when Kakashi suddenly spotted someone he needed to talk to. He stopped and turned to Kareno, who looked up at Kakashi curiously.

"What is it, dad?"

"I need to go talk to someone. It might be awhile, do you mind going back by yourself and dropping everything off? You can go wherever you want afterward, I'll come looking for you when I'm done," he said.

"Yeah, sure," Kareno replied, taking the bags from his father's hands before Kakashi turned to leave, raising his arm up in the air to wave goodbye to him. A moment passed, and he had vanished. Kareno had no idea how he vanished so quickly, but he was sure it would never cease to amaze him.

He got to the front door and quickly realized his hands were too full to open the door and bring in all the bags at once. He sighed, his head drooping down. He hated doing several trips at a time.

"Need a hand?" a feminine voice came from behind him on the street. He turned and immediately recognized the kunoichi who had saved him in the forest. He wondered if his father knew the details of that event yet?

'_What was her name again? __Wasn't __it something like Kasura? No, Saruka? No, what was it? Sakura? Yeah. That sounds right,'_ Kareno thought to himself quickly before he answered her.

"Good afternoon Sakura-san," he greeted. She smiled at him.

"Hey Kareno-kun. Do you need help?" she asked, already taking some of the bags out of his hands. When she looked up at the house, she frowned slightly. "Why do you need to get into Kakashi-sensei's house?"

The door was already opened with Kareno kicking off his shoes. He was setting the bags down on the bar in the kitchen when she had asked the second question. He looked at her funny. A light bulb could practically be seen lighting up above her head a moment later.

"No way...you really are his relative, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Kareno nodded. "His son, actually."

Sakura gasped, then suddenly seemed to have difficulty breathing as she accidentally choked on her own spit. She coughed over and over again until she was fine, then muttered in embarrassment.

"Sorry, that just surprised me was all. But, I guess you two really do look a lot alike, so I shouldn't be so shocked."

"You're not the first," Kareno grinned under his mask as he helped Sakura, who had kicked off her shoes as well, before putting the rest of the bags down on the kitchen bar top.

"What do you mean?" She asked curiously.

"A whole mob of Jounin were here a few hours ago to see me. Apparently I'm the new rumor going about town," he shrugged modestly.

"Seriously?" _'Damn you, Naruto.'_ She thought to herself.

_'Yes, and it was very loud,'_ Kai muttered the annoyed side comment in response to Sakura's surprised reply. Kareno ignored it.

"Yep. Thanks for the help Sakura-san," he said gratefully. She nodded once in reply.

"No problem. So, um, where are you off to now?"

Kareno handed Sakura her ninja sandals, slipping his own black ones on afterward. "Not sure. I was just going to wander around and see where the road takes me."

That line sounded a little too close to one her old sensei used to use whenever he was late, she noticed.

"Well, if you need a tour guide of-sorts, you're free to join me. I'm off work today at the hospital."

"You work at the hospital?"

"That's right. I'm head medic there, just under the Hokage herself. I'm her apprentice, you know," she smiled proudly. Kareno stared at her with an expression close to worship.

"So you even know medical ninjutsu?" He asked. He had a soft spot for medical advances with jutsu. A comrade of his from the land of waves had even taught him a trick or two during his time there. He'd loved learning about it ever since.

"I sure do," she smiled again, putting her hands on her hips.

"Sakura-san, I'd be honored if I could see you use your medic skills sometime," he said fondly. She pinked slightly.

"Sure thing! You know, the way you talk and act really doesn't fit your age at all," she commented in a tone that sounded rather intrigued.

"I get that a lot. I can thank my rough years of my mission for that," was all he said in reply. Sakura waited to see if he would continue, but when he didn't, she simply shrugged and walked out the door and waited for Kareno to follow. He stepped out and closed the door behind him. Sakura beckoned to him to join her, and so he did.

"Where are we headed, exactly?" he asked.

"I was going to stop at the Hokage's office to see if there are any new missions yet, and to see if she would recommend me to Jounin rank."

"You're a Chunin?" He asked, surprised. "I had assumed you were Jounin by how you fought in the forest that day."

"Why thank you! That's nice to hear," she said happily, feeling even fonder of the kid than the day she had met him. If she were to ever become a teacher for the Genin, she would love to teach him and have him be her student.

When they had almost neared the tower, Kareno had suddenly given Sakura a deadly look that clearly said "I challenge you."

Inner Sakura automatically came out, instantly causing her to go into her competitive mode. Kareno counted to three, and the two of them raced to the tower. Sakura laughed giddily into the air whipping past her, feeling a strange freedom from doing something so silly with an eleven-year-old kid, who was miraculously somehow able to keep pace with her.

Tsunade watched the two of them from the big windows that lined the back of her office. She laughed at her pupil's expression. Sakura had grown fiercer and fiercer the longer the boy kept up with her. They tagged the building entrance at the same time, almost knocking poor Ebisu flat onto his back.

_'What a pair those two make,'_ she shook her head before sitting back down in her chair.

* * *

Kakashi had to explain to Iruka multiple times until it seemed to finally register on the Chunin's face.

"Your...son?!"

"Yes, Iruka-sensei. As I've asked _several_ times, I would like to enter him into the academy." He said, trying to be as patient as possible. Before Iruka could protest, Kakashi explained.

"He's already had training from his mother, who I can vouch is one of the best Kunoichi I've ever known, for five years. On top of that, he was sent on a top-secret mission by the Sondaime himself for most of his life, which he came back successful from. Technically, he should already be above the rank of Genin, but the Hokage informed me it would be good for him to still finish up a few years at the academy and go through the usual process of ranking up. She even gave me a document ordering you to enter him into the shinobi class of his age." He held out the paper to Iruka, who took it and glanced over it briefly before sighing.

"I'm willing to add him in, don't get me wrong sempai. This I just so huge, I don't know how to feel about it. Kakashi Hatake, the ex-Anbu, ex-Sharingan wielder, and public porn-reader has a son who is already eleven years old." Iruka slumped in his chair.

"Believe me, I know. It's still hitting me like new every day I wake up. It's a lot to take in."

"I guess congratulations are in order though," Iruka smiled warmly. Kakashi grinned back, then quickly frowned.

"There's something else you should know about him, Iruka..."

Iruka's attention was immediately all on Kakashi the moment the warning tone entered the Jounin's voice.

"What?"

Kakashi listened and looked around them for a minute, making sure they were the only ones who could hear the conversation.

"I haven't approached him about it yet, but it's already been confirmed..."

"What has?" Iruka asked, extremely curious now.

"Iruka...Kareno is a Jinchuuriki."

* * *

**Author's Notes! :)**

I know this chapter really didn't have a whole lot of crazy action or anything tense or even anything romantic in it. I'm getting to that stuff. I've gotta build my way up to the good stuff in the story. This chapter was more of a fun time to see the relationship between Kakashi and his son grow, as well as seeing Kareno adjust to his new home in the village he originated from. More events will get the story moving in the next chapters and will involve more action, romance, etc. No worries. :)

So like I said at the beginning, I am SO sorry, you guys, about how long it took for me to finish this one! T^T I have had virtually no time for writing since my college classes are taking over my life right now, but I will do my best to keep writing and get chapters up. I can't guarantee a specific amount of chapters within a specific time range, but please keep reading and enjoy. Thanks for the follows and favorites and reviews! Love you all!

~Rin-chan

P.s. I will also start drawing some of my characters, as well as scenes from my story, and post them on my deviant art for you guys to enjoy!


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